The massive wound in Hody's abdomen was a gaping hole that went completely through his body. Blood mixed with seawater as he let out one final, agonized scream before collapsing. The Energy Steroids still coursing through his system kept him alive, but barely. His body lay crumpled on the seafloor like a discarded rag doll, the arrogance and hatred that had once defined him now replaced by the hollow stare of defeat.
Jerry stood over his fallen opponent, watching as the last wisps of his water dragon technique dissipated into the surrounding ocean. The technique had been devastatingly effective—perhaps more so than he'd intended. But given Hody's crimes and the countless lives he'd threatened, Jerry felt no remorse.
Turning away from the broken shark fishman, Jerry surveyed the rest of the battlefield. The sight that greeted him was exactly what he'd expected. After Ace had finished cooking Hyouzou to a crisp, the tide of battle had shifted completely in their favor. The remaining Fishman Street thugs were either unconscious, seriously wounded, or had simply lost the will to fight after watching their leaders fall one by one.
The Spade Pirates stood victorious among the scattered bodies of their enemies, many sporting minor injuries but all wearing expressions of triumph. This had been a battle against overwhelming odds—nearly thirty thousand supremacists against their small crew—and they'd emerged victorious. Jerry could already hear the excited chatter beginning as crew members started processing what they'd just accomplished.
"This is definitely going in my novel," Deuce was muttering as he finished bandaging a cut on his arm. "Though I'll probably have to tone it down. No one would believe we actually fought this many people."
"Ah! You are Vander Decken IX!"
The sudden scream snapped Jerry's attention back to the present. He spun around to see Dora bursting from her hiding spot behind a large piece of coral, her eyes wide with terror. Behind her, giving chase with an expression of twisted glee, was one of the most repulsive fishmen Jerry had ever laid eyes on.
The creature pursuing Dora had the grotesque features of a Japanese bullhead shark—split hair, four legs, and two hands that looked far too eager to grab his target. His face bore the kind of expression that made Jerry's skin crawl, a combination of desperation and perverted obsession that immediately set off every alarm bell in his head.
"Bahahaha! You can't escape from me, little mermaid!" the shark fishman cackled, his voice carrying an oily quality that made Jerry want to punch him on principle alone.
Vander Decken IX was so focused on his prey that he never saw Jerry moving. One moment he was reaching for Dora with those grabbing hands, and the next his vision exploded into stars as Jerry's fist connected with his chest. The impact sent him flying backward, blood spraying from his mouth as he crashed into the seafloor with a sickening thud.
Jerry stood over the groaning fishman, flexing his knuckles. "Well, that was satisfying."
Dora swam over quickly, her breathing still rapid from the chase. "Jerry! Thank you so much. I thought I was safe in my hiding spot, but he must have been watching me the whole time."
"Who exactly is this creep?" Jerry asked acting confused, prodding the fallen shark with his foot. The fishman groaned but didn't try to get up—apparently Jerry's punch had done some serious damage to his ribs.
"That's Vander Decken IX," Dora explained, her voice filled with disgust. "He's been working with Hody's group, though he usually stays in the shadows. He probably wanted to take me hostage so he could escape after seeing how badly the battle went."
Jerry frowned as a memory surfaced. "Wait, isn't he wanted by the Dragon Palace Kingdom? I remember seeing his bounty poster when we first arrived."
"That's right!" Dora's voice grew heated. "He's been stalking Princess Shirahoshi for years. Can you believe he had the nerve to propose to her when she was just a child? When the royal family rejected him, he started threatening her life. The princess has been trapped in her tower because of this pervert."
"A stalker, huh?" Jerry's expression darkened. He'd dealt with enough scumbags in both his old life and this one to recognize the type. "Let me guess—when she said no, he decided that meant she just needed more 'convincing.'"
"Exactly," Dora shuddered. "He's the kind of creep who thinks persistence equals romance. The kingdom has been trying to catch him for years, but he's always managed to slip away."
Jerry grabbed Vander Decken by the collar and dragged him over to where the other defeated enemies lay. The stalker was conscious but clearly in too much pain to cause any more trouble. "Well, his luck just ran out."
The rest of the Spade Pirates had finished gathering the surviving Fishman Street members into a pile. Most were unconscious or too injured to move, while others like Hody and Hyouzou were barely clinging to life thanks to the Energy Steroids they'd consumed. The drugs had aged them considerably—what had once been powerful fishmen now looked like decrepit old versions of themselves.
"So, captain," Jerry called out to Ace, who was standing over the thoroughly cooked Hyouzou. "What's the plan for cleanup? Should we let you give them the full fire treatment, or do you want to hear my suggestion?"
Ace looked up from the octopus fishman, whose skin had taken on an unappetizing charcoal color. "I'm listening. Though honestly, most of these guys don't have long anyway." He gestured at the aged supremacists. "They basically committed suicide by overdosing on those drug."
"That's their problem," Jerry shrugged. "But I was thinking we could kill two birds with one stone here. Turn this whole mess into a favor for the Dragon Palace Kingdom."
The crew gathered around as Jerry explained his thinking. "Look, we just defeated a major threat to Fishman Island's stability. We've also captured one of their most wanted criminals. Instead of just leaving this mess for someone else to clean up, why not make sure the right people get the credit?"
"You want to call the kingdom?" Deuce asked, catching on quickly.
"Exactly. Skull, can you contact Jenny and have her get word to the palace? Tell them that a large group of rebels from Fishman Street has been defeated, and that we've also captured Vander Decken IX."
Skull's eyes lit up at the prospect of using his network again. "Oh! Boss Jerry, consider it done! Jenny will be so excited to help with something this big."
As Skull moved away to make the call, Jerry turned to Dora. "I'll need you to act as our witness when the princes arrive. You can testify that Hody was planning rebellion—which he definitely was, based on all that supremacist nonsense he was spouting."
"Of course," Dora nodded eagerly. "And I can collect the bounty on Vander Decken, right? Since you're pirates, it might be awkward for you to claim it."
"Smart thinking," Jerry smiled. "Also, when you talk to whoever shows up from the palace, try to get a private moment with them. Tell them they should interrogate Hody thoroughly about Princess Otohime's assassination. He let some interesting details slip during our fight."
This was a complete lie, of course, but Jerry figured the winner of a battle had the right to shape the narrative a little. Besides, given Hody's obvious hatred for the late queen's peaceful ideals, there was probably some truth to be uncovered anyway.
Dora's eyes widened. "He was involved in the queen's death?"
"Let's just say he knows more than he's been telling," Jerry said carefully. "The kingdom's investigators should ask him some hard questions while he's still alive."
With the arrangements made, the crew settled in to wait for the Dragon Palace Kingdom's forces to arrive. The adrenaline from the battle was starting to wear off, and Jerry could see his crewmates beginning to process what they'd just accomplished.
"Can you believe we actually did that?" Mihar was saying to one of the newer crew members. "Thirty thousand enemies, and we barely broke a sweat."
"Speak for yourself," another pirate laughed, nursing a bruised arm. "I definitely broke a sweat. But man, what a rush!"
Jerry smiled at their enthusiasm but found his attention drawn to Wallace, who sat apart from the others. The scorpion fishman was staring blankly at the defeated forms of his former neighbors, his expression a mixture of sadness and confusion.
Walking over, Jerry settled down beside him. "How are you holding up?"
Wallace was quiet for a long moment before responding. "I'm... it's complicated. When I left Fishman Street years ago, I never imagined it would become like this. And my old friends..." He gestured weakly at the unconscious supremacists. "I used to play with some of these guys when we were kids."
"That must be rough," Jerry said softly. He wasn't great at comfort, but he could see that Wallace needed to talk.
"The worst part is, I understand how it happened," Wallace continued. "Fishman Street has always been a hard place to grow up. Lots of anger, lots of resentment toward humans. But this..." He shook his head. "Hody turned that anger into something poisonous. He convinced them that violence was the only answer."
Jerry nodded. "Hatred is like that. It spreads if you're not careful, especially when you're already hurting."
"I keep thinking about what might have happened if I'd stayed," Wallace said. "Maybe I could have talked sense into them, kept them from following Hody down this path."
"Or maybe you would have been dragged down with them," Jerry pointed out. "Sometimes the best thing you can do is get yourself to safety first. You can't save someone who doesn't want to be saved."
Wallace let out a long sigh. "I know you're right. It's just... hard to accept."
They sat in comfortable silence for a while, watching as the other crew members continued their animated discussions about the battle. In the distance, Jerry could see the lights of approaching ships—probably the Dragon Palace Kingdom's forces responding to Skull's message.
"You know," Jerry said eventually, "life is kind of like eating. Sometimes you're going to bite into something that doesn't agree with you, and you'll end up with a stomachache."
Wallace looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression.
"But here's the thing about stomachaches," Jerry continued, warming to his metaphor despite knowing he was probably butchering it. "They're temporary. You feel terrible for a while, but eventually your system clears out the bad stuff, and you're back to normal. The experience becomes just another story to tell."
"Are you comparing my childhood friends to food poisoning?" Wallace asked, and Jerry was relieved to hear a hint of amusement in his voice.
"Hey, I never claimed to be good at this comfort thing," Jerry laughed. "But my point stands. This pain you're feeling? It's going to pass. And when it does, you'll be stronger for having gone through it."
Wallace was quiet for another moment, then nodded slowly. "Thanks, Jerry. I... I think I needed to hear that."
"Anytime," Jerry said, patting the fishman on the shoulder. "Besides, you've got a whole new family now. The Spade Pirates might be a bunch of crazy misfits, but we look out for each other."
As if summoned by his words, Ace appeared beside them, plopping down with his characteristic grin. "What are you two being all serious about? We just won an awesome fight! This calls for a party!"
Jerry watched as more crew members drifted over to join their conversation, the group naturally forming into the kind of close-knit circle that had become second nature to them. In the distance, the royal ships were getting closer, their lights cutting through the dark water of the Sea Forest.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Support me at p@treon.com/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~